


Birthday Pancakes

by RoSholl



Series: Sweetest Devotion [4]
Category: Women's Soccer RPF
Genre: F/F, mallory press-heath
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-01
Updated: 2020-04-01
Packaged: 2021-02-28 18:33:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,912
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23431753
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RoSholl/pseuds/RoSholl
Summary: It's Tobin's birthday, so Christen wakes up early with their three year old daughter Mallory Press-Heath to make a surprise for her to wake up to.
Relationships: Tobin Heath/Christen Press
Series: Sweetest Devotion [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1669210
Comments: 14
Kudos: 179





	Birthday Pancakes

As quietly as she could, Christen slipped out of the bed she shared with her wife, looking back once she stood to see whether she had woken up. Of course, she knew the chances of that were slim, Tobin slept like a rock. But still, she stayed to watch her for a few beautiful minutes, seeing the rise and fall of her chest, the way her hair curled across her neck.

Christen loved Tobin. And today was one of her favorite days, because it was Tobin’s birthday.

She padded out of the room, right across the hall to where a door was half open, leading into their three year old daughter’s room. She’d reminded Mal last night when she was putting her to sleep that it was Mommy’s birthday tomorrow, and that the two of them could get up early and make a surprise for her.

Mal had been so excited, it was hard to get her to actually go to sleep after that. It took a fully 20 minutes longer than usual, and Christen had to lay down with her, rubbing her back in calm circles as she gently sung lullaby after lullaby to her baby, watching in adoration as sleep eventually took over her body. Her little chubby cheeks puffing breath past her tiny lips, her curls, wild and beautiful like her Mama’s sprawled across the pillow.

That’s exactly how she looked as Christen tip toed into her room that morning, seeing her still asleep. She smiled to herself, thinking that it was better to let her sleep than to wake her early. But just as she had turned to walk out of the room again, a little voice called out.

“Mama?”

“Hi, baby girl.” Christen murmured as she turned around, seeing Mal’s head lift up from the pillow, her face still half asleep and confused. “Mama’s here.”

When she sat down on the bed, Mal’s arms reached out to her and she was quickly scooped up into Christen’s embrace, sitting on her lap with her head resting against her chest. Christen held her daughter close, swaying ever so slightly side to side with her in her arms, slowly but surely bringing Mal back into the world of the awake.

The cuddles Mal gave them after she’d just woken up were their favorite kind. The little girl was always so sleepy, slow to rise just like her Mommy, and she basically attached herself koala style to either of them until she decided she was awake. One of her tiny hands would grasp the fabric of their shirt, grounding her to them, and the side of her head would lean against the top of their chests, pressing close into their warm embrace.

Christen’s arms were wrapped around Mal, content to just be in the silence with her, to appreciate the moment she had, to appreciate all she had. She loved her family so much, and she loved these quiet, soft moments to reflect on that.

After a while, Mal wriggled a bit on her lap. Christen pulled her back in her arms, giving her a soft smile.

“Good morning, baby girl.”

“Hi, Mama.”

“Did you have a good sleep?”

“Big sleep.” Mal smiled, stretching her arms above her head with the most precious yawn that followed. Christen couldn’t help but drop her head down and kiss Mal’s soft cheeks a few times, making her baby giggle softly.

“That’s right, you had a big sleep.”

“Mama sleep?”

“I had a good sleep, thank you for asking!”

Mal smiled at that, throwing her arms around Christen’s neck and hugging her tight.

“Love you, Mama.”

Christen held her back just as tight, squeezing her eyes shut at the overwhelming feelings of love and devotion and protection she had for her daughter. “I love you too, baby girl, so much.”

Mal gave her a kiss when she pulled away, playing with Christen’s hair. “Mommy?”

“Mommy’s asleep still. Do you remember what today is?”

It took a few seconds, but soon Mal remembered the conversation they’d had the previous night, and her eyes lit up. “Mommy cake!”

Christen laughed, loving how on brand it was for her daughter to only be excited about food. “It’s Mommy’s birthday, baby girl. But we do have cake for her as well, you’re right.”

“Mommy birthday!” Mal exclaimed, smile wide.

“Do you remember I said we were going to have a surprise for Mommy?” Christen asked, seeing Mal nod. “Well, we’re going to go and make her breakfast and then bring it to her in bed.”

“In bed?” Mal’s eyes were astonished, trying to compute how that would work since she knew, “Mama said food at table.”

Christen grinned. How was this 3 year old already outsmarting her? “You’re my clever baby girl aren’t you? I did say that, you’re right. And we do only have food at the table. But sometimes, when it’s an extra special time, we can have food in bed. Only if me or Mommy says it’s okay.”

“Exta special!”

“That’s right. I think Mommy’s birthday is extra special, don’t you?”

“Yes!” Mal jumped up on Christen’s lap, and Christen had to move her arms around her back hurriedly in case she fell. “Let’s go, Mama.”

Christen got Mal ready for the day, although when she said that Mommy requested a ‘pajamas only day’ Mal got so excited she almost shot out of where she was seated in front of Christen, who was in the middle of putting her hair into French braids.

“So, what should we make Mommy for breakfast?” Christen asked as she sat Mal on the kitchen bench, getting out some bowls around her. “What’s her favorite food do you think?”

“Candy!”

Christen laughed, knowing Tobin’s obsession with sour patch kids was well known by even their daughter, who always seemed to be able to find the finished packets laying around before begging for some herself.

“You’re probably right, Mal, but we can’t eat candy for breakfast. Maybe later, but not right now. Do you think Mommy would like to eat…green beans for breakfast?” Christen watched Mal laugh and shake her head, making a disgusted face. They were still going through the process of learning what foods Mal was into or not, and so far green beans were definitely in the ‘not’ column. “What about lemons?”

“No, Mama!” Mal laughed again, even she remembered the betrayal of when Aunty Kelley fed her a piece of lemon, making all the adults at the table laugh and making Mal squeeze her eyes shut at the sharp taste.

“Okay, hmmm.” Christen pretended to think even as she got the ingredients out for pancakes. “What about pancakes?”

“Pancakes!” Mal excitedly yelled out, and Christen shushed her gently, not wanting to wake Tobin up.

“Alright, I think that’s the Mal seal of approval I needed.” Christen kissed her on the forehead, lining up everything on the bench. “You want to be Mama’s big helper?”

That was a silly question, because _of course_ Mal did. The two of them slowly made their way through the recipe, Christen watching in amusement as Mal managed to tip most of the ingredients the right way into the bowl. She figured the chocolate chips they poured in with it would make up for anything they missed, and Mal definitely enjoyed eating those as they poured them into the bowl.

Soon after, they had a pretty decent stack of chocolate chip pancakes on a plate with syrup, Christen grabbing the two cups of coffee that had been brewing while they were cooking and Mal’s sippy cup and putting it all on a tray.

“Can you remember where we hid Mommy’s present, baby girl?” Christen grinned as Mal raced off to the set of drawers by the door, digging around until she pulled out the wrapped box and the card she insisted on making.

It was a bright yellow piece of cardboard folded in half, almost completely covered in stickers that Mal was really into right then. Hilariously, when Christen was pulling out supplies for Mal the other day, she came across an old Portland Thorns sticker sheet from way back in the day, before they’d even won the 2019 world cup.

Mal, of course, had lost it in excitement to see her Mommy on some stickers, along with Aunty Lindsey and Aunty Sonny, and had insisted they all be stuck on the card. So, along with the present in Mal’s hand, the card she carried was full of loving scribbles, stickers of Tobin, Sonnett, Lindsey and some rainbows, and an actual message from Christen:

_To the love of my life,_

_You fill our house with brightness and love. You are our rock and our joy._

_My heart is full with the way you love our daughter, the way you walk with kindness in this world, the way you love me._

_You are smart, caring, beyond beautiful and you still give me butterflies._

_Thank you for choosing me, for giving me a life I never could have even dreamed of._

_Happy birthday, baby. I’ll love you forever._

_Mal’s scribbles are clearly of too high intelligence for us to be able to decipher, but I just asked her what she wanted to say and she said, and I quote: “I love Mommy and Mommy’s cake.”_

_She’s just learnt birthdays mean cake and you know our daughter. Safe to say her day is made._

_We love you so much._

_Love from Christen and Mal (and apparently Aunty Lindsey and Aunty Sonny as well)_

Mal bounced excitedly on her tip toes when they got to the door of Christen and Tobin’s room, looking up at Christen for permission before pushing the door open, seeing Tobin still asleep on the bed.

Christen gently put the tray down on the bedside table, before lifting Mal up onto the bed. “You can wake her up. But quietly, baby girl, okay? Mommy doesn’t compute loud noises this early.”

Mal crawled to where Tobin was laying, putting the present beside her as she hugged her, resting her head on Tobin’s chest. “Mommy,” She whispered, wriggling around a little and smiling when Tobin moved a bit. “Mommy wake up. Mommy birthday.”

Christen could tell Tobin had left the world of the unconscious, her body moving around, some small sounds of alertness leaving her mouth. Mal was looking at her eagerly, and she laughed in delight when Tobin’s arms came up to wrap around her back where she lay on her chest.

“Did someone say it was my birthday?” Tobin’s sleepy mumble made everyone in the room smile, Mal especially.

“I did, Mommy!”

“Who said that?”

“Mommy I did!” Mal was full on laughing, loving this game that Tobin played with her often. Tobin’s eyes were still closed, but she was holding Mal tight, and a grin rested on her face.

“Who? That sounds a lot like my baby Mal but I can’t see her.”

“Mommy eyes open!”

“Oh!” Tobin opened her eyes, playful surprise on her face when she saw Mal there and she pulled her up towards her face, planting little kisses all over her cheeks and laughing along with her daughter. “Thank goodness you reminded me. Otherwise I wouldn’t have gotten to see your cute little face!”

Mal laughed more, giving Tobin a kiss as she hugged her tight.

“Hello, my beautiful wife.” Tobin grinned up at Christen, over Mal’s head, and Christen fell a little bit more in love when she did.

Christen leaned down to kiss Tobin good morning. “Hi, birthday girl.”

“Mommy birthday!” Mal exclaimed, like she’d almost forgotten what they’d gone in there for. “Look!” She reached beside her for the present, giving it to Tobin.

“This is for me?”

“Yes! From Mommy and Baby Mal. And breakfast Mommy!” Mal looked so proud of herself when she pointed to the pancakes sitting beside the bed, looking up to her Mama who was smiling back at her.

“Breakfast in bed? How much did you pay your Mama to let that happen, hey?” Tobin tickled Mal’s sides as the little girl giggled, and Christen rolled her eyes with a smile, pulling the tray onto her lap.

“Well, I figured since it was an extra special day, we could break the rules every now and again.”

“Extra special? All for me? You two know how to make a woman feel loved. Thank you so much.” Tobin kissed Mal on the head, and Christen on the lips softly, whispering how much she loved her again.

“It’s pancakes, Mommy.”

“It is! That’s my favorite!”

Mal gasped in happiness, clapping, thinking she and Christen had magically guessed right. She settled herself in between her mothers, watching with her feet tapping happily as Christen passed the tray to Tobin.

“Baby Mal help?” Mal looked up at Tobin who had picked up one of the knives and forks, about to cut into a pancake.

“Let Mommy cut it up, baby girl, it’s a big knife.” Christen said, even though it was just an ordinary butter knife.

“Oh, big knife.” Mal nodded, sitting back and watching Tobin cut up the pancakes and pour syrup on them. When they were all cut up small like that, Mal recognized it as food she would eat, and then a great idea popped into her head. “I help you, Mommy!”

Tobin just laughed out loud as Mal picked up one of the other forks on the tray, trying her best to stab into a piece of the pancake and holding it up to Tobin’s mouth just like her mothers had always done for her when they used to feed her (and occasionally still did, if it was a tricky dinner to eat). She was laughing so much she had trouble keeping her mouth open, but eventually Mal got the piece of pancake in her mouth, smudging some syrup on her lip as she went.

“Yummy?” Mal asked the question Tobin and Christen always asked her when she ate, and they both felt their hearts overflow with adoration and love for the cutest bundle of a person in front of them.

“It’s _delicious_! Thank you, baby.” Tobin praised, seeing the proud smile on Mal’s face. “You and Mama really made that? It’s so yummy.”

“We did!” Mal got another piece onto the fork. “Some more?”

“Yes please.” Tobin ate the next piece Mal held up for her, wiping the syrup off her lip with her finger. “Hey baby, I think Mama wants some as well.”

“Mama some!” Mal got another piece, this one happened to be sitting in syrup, and even though Christen scooted closer into them, some of the syrup still dripped onto the sheets before Mal moved the piece into Christen’s mouth.

“Uh oh.” Mal looked at the dropped syrup, before looking back up at her moms. To her great relief, both of them just smiled, kissing her head with her Mama telling her that she was going to change the sheets today anyway, so they could get the bed as messy as they liked.

“Are you going to have some too, baby?” Tobin asked, watching as Mal’s eyes lit up and she forked some of the pancakes into her own mouth. They finished the rest of the pancakes like that, Mal feeding each of them in turn, feeling like she was such a big girl and such a big helper. When it was all finished, Mal happily sat on Christen’s lap with her sippy cup as Christen drank her coffee, both of them watching Tobin read her card.

A soft smile stayed on Tobin’s face the whole time she was reading it, and laughter broke out at the end as she read Mal’s message and looked at the stickers. “This is so nice, I love it! It’s my favorite card ever!” Tobin said to Mal’s great delight, and she thanked both of them, Christen especially, for such a heartfelt card.

Her gratitude extended even further when she unwrapped her present to see a wide film polaroid camera, one she’d been wanting for a long time. She gasped in happiness, Christen looking on at her with a soft smile as Mal clapped her hands, not really knowing what it was but knowing Mommy was happy.

Tobin hugged both of them, her smile wide as she thanked them, her day getting off to the best start. She immediately set it up, putting some film in it and turning it to the short focus setting.

“What do you say, let’s take the first polaroid on here to remember the best start to a birthday ever?” She held the camera towards the three of them as Christen and Mal cuddled in close, all soft and warm and syrupy sticky and so full of love. They spent the next minute watching it develop in front of their eyes in awe, Mal excitedly pointing out all of them as they came into light in the picture.

“Happy birthday, baby.” Christen murmured to Tobin as they kissed over Mal’s head, tasting the sweet syrup still sitting on her lips. “I love you.”

“I love you, Chris. Thank you for this. For this morning, and for this life you’ve given me. For our baby girl.” Tobin whispered softly against her lips and Christen could have cried at how happy she was. She had her wife in her arms, their daughter cuddled into them, and it was all she’d ever need to be happy, she knew it.

**Author's Note:**

> The world is chaos but I wanted to write this for everyone because it's completely soft and feel good and we could use some smiles right now. Thank you for all your comments on the other works, they mean a lot to me! Please let me know if you have ideas for future chapters, I've already noted down other prompts you gave me. Stay safe everyone!


End file.
